In recent years, flip-chip mounting has become the most common type of semiconductor mounting since it enables miniaturization of circuit boards as exemplified by MCM (Multichip Module) or CSP (Chip Size Package). Typically in flip-chip mounting, a recognition camera is employed to recognize an IC which is suck-held to a substrate or bonding head in order to perform correction of the mounting position immediately before mounting. When this is done, if the IC is dirty or its recognition attitude is tilted, an IC recognition error will occur; however, in order not to lower the working rate by stopping working of the equipment, the IC sucked by the bonding head is shifted by the bonding head to a removal position, whence it is then removed into a removal unit.
An example of a prior art IC removal device as referred to above is described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 4 shows the layout of a prior art flip-chip mounting equipment fitted with an IC removal device. In FIG. 4, 1 indicates a bonding head, 3 indicates a recognition camera, 4 an IC and 5 a circuit board; 11 is an IC removal BOX fixed at a prescribed location. After the recognition camera 3 has recognized an IC 4, if a recognition error ensues, the bonding head 1, while sucking the IC 4, moves over to above the IC removal BOX 11 where the adhesion action is discontinued, allowing the IC 4 to drop into the IC removal BOX 11. After removing the IC 4, the bonding head 1 moves to the IC feed system, where it extracts a new IC 4 and performs a recognition operation.
However, since, in an IC removal device as illustrated above, an IC 4 is removed by its own free dropping into a removal BOX 11, the removed IC 4 gets scratched and damaged, and the IC 4 may also be electrostatically destroyed when it contacts the removal BOX 11. Thus, it is seldom that such ICs 4 can not be reused. A further problem is that it is difficult to handle the ICs 4 when they are to be re-examined, since they are removed into a removal BOX 11 without any particular care being exercised.